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Summary: Comparative poliotics
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Comparative politicsLecture 01 [03-09-
2020]
Key concepts: (chapter 1)
Government
Government has two definitions:
The institutions and structures through which societies are governed; reaching
and executing binding decisions for society.
- (This includes civil servants, policemen/women, soldiers, teachers and
nurses.)
The top level within these institutions.
- (in this more political definition the government = ministers, The political
heads. Civil servants are not part of the government.)
Government vs. Governance
Government: All organizations through which we experience public authority.
For example: ministries, parliament, city council, police department etc.
Governance: The process of coordinating decisions, laws, and policies.
With or without the input of formal institutions. It Involves government
institutions but also involves private actors, Trade unions, academic, specialists,
companies, interest groups etc. (so everyone with an opinion).
- This is a broader concept than government.
Politics
Politics: The process by which people negotiate and compete in the process of
making and executing shared or collective decisions.
- Politics is about Communicating, negotiating and reconciling different and
competing interests within a social group.
- Reaching and implementing collective decisions, by force if necessary.
(Monopoly of the sword granted to a government).
- Conflict over the definitions of resources (Harold Laswell: ‘politics is about
who gets what, when and how’.)
Power, authority, legitimacy
Power: The capacity to bring about intended effects (= make and enforce
political decisions).
- Power can also have a second and third dimension.
- The capacity to determine what is being discussed.
- The capacity to determine what people want.
Authority: Is the right to exercise power (to ‘rule’).
- Can have three sources: Tradition, charisma, and law (impers
- onal, universally applicable rules).
,Legitimacy: It means that someone’s right to make political decisions is widely
accepted and recognized by their subjects and by other governments.
Ideology
Ideology: System of connected beliefs, shared view of the world. Or a blueprint
for how politics, economics and society should be structured. (We all have a way
to look at the world).
5 major ideologies:
Anarchism: All forms of governmental authority are unnecessary: society is best
structured around voluntary cooperation and the association.
Marxism: Elimination for the state system and private property will lead to the
creation of classless non-exploitative and self-governing society.
Liberalism: Indivualism are the best judges of their own interests maximizes
personal freedom, favor a limited but freely elected government.
Conservatism: traditional institutions and practices work best; governments
should be as decentralized as possible (keep what we have because that’s best)
Fascism: achievement of national unity through an authoritarian state (it is
about power). Strong leadership, mass mobilization, emphasis on nationalism and
militarism.
The State
State: A State is the legal and political authority of a territory containing a
population marked by borders. It has 5 defining features: Government,
Population, Territory, Legitimacy and Sovereignty
Citizen: A full member of a state, entitled to the rights and subject to the duties
associated with that status. Citizenship is typically confirmed in a document such
as a passport or identity card.
Sovereignty
Sovereignty: The ultimate source of authority in a society. The sovereign is the
highest and final decision-maker within a community.
- Usually an elected law-making assembly (in a democracy) or a supreme
ruler (in an authoritarian regime).
Sovereignty has two dimensions.
- Internal sovereignty: Within the state there is no higher authority.
- External sovereignty: other states recognize a state’s right to fully
exercise the higher authority within its borders and abstain from
interfering with it.
Most countries have both internal sovereignty and external sovereignty. But
there are exeptions:
, Called quasi-states: They have external sovereignty while lacking internal
sovereignty: they are recognized by other countries, but inside the country their
government lacks authority.
Facto states: They have internal sovereignty while lacking external sovereignty:
such a country has an actual government, but other states do not recognize it as
a state.
History of the state
Until a few centuries ago, the world consisted of either state-less communities
(self-sustaining village communities, nomadic tribes, gatherer and hunter
societies) or states that were quite different from the ones we know today.
These pre-modern states were
- City-states (Ancient Greece, Medieval Italy)
- Empires (Ancient Egypt, Incas, Rome, China, Ottoman)
- Kingdoms (medieval Europe, much of Africa)
Modern state emerged in Western Europe in 15th to 17th century as a result of
Wars of Religion (Catholics vs. Protestants)
Peace of Westphalia (1648): The Peace of Westphalia was crucial in instilling the
ideals of sovereignty of states and political self-determination. Important to this
was the idea that national-level secular authority was superior to religious
commands from Rome (the pope). All of the other options occurred after the
1648 when the concept of the state was formed.
established the sovereignty of states: Pope no more above the kings. Kings able
to sovereignly decide which religion should be adopted in their states and which
laws should prevail. Une foi, une lois, un roi (one faith, one law, one king).
Inspired by Locke and Rousseau, revolutions (USA 1770-76, France 1789) transfer
sovereignty from the king to the people and limit it.
In 19th & 20th centuries, decolonization made the whole world adopt the West
European model of the modern state
Nation
Nation: A cultural and historical concept describing a group of people who
identify with one another on the basis of a shared history, culture, language, or
myths. Often make a claim to a particular territory as their homeland.
In reality a nation is rather an imagined community. A group of people which
“claims: to share the same history, culture, language and/or homeland.
Nation hood is often used to justify claims to territory, autonomy and self-
determination: the ability to act without external compulsion.
Nationalism
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